Dickens has Huge Night as Women's Volleyball tops Anderson 3-1

MISENHEIMER, N.C. – Senior Brittany Dickens (Raleigh, NC) put up a double-double with 14 kills and 16 digs to lead the Pfeiffer Lady Falcons to a 3-1 (30-28, 25-21, 22-25, 25-21) Conference Carolinas win over Anderson University on Friday night in Merner Gym. Pfeiffer, with the victory, moves its overall record to 5-6 on the year, now 2-1 in conference play. With the loss, Anderson falls to .500 at 6-6, 1-2.

Set one needed extra points in a back-and-forth match to decide a winner. Pfeiffer trailed early as several ball handling errors led to a 5-4 Trojans lead. Junior Jamie Lancaster (Fountain Inn, SC) started Anderson out with a lead on the first play of the night and continued the Anderson lead when her fifth kill of the setkept the Trojans ahead at 18-16. Pfeiffer later took advantage of a pair of Anderson errors to go up 22-21 taking their first lead of the match. Dickens along with Kristina Mordini (Freeport, IL) rallied the Lady Falcons back on top at 28-27 before Dickens finished off Anderson with two more kills to win the set 30-28.

Dickens would stay hot as her first kill in set two would put the Lady Falcons up 3-2, never relinquishing the lead from there. Lancaster brought Anderson to within one at 11-10 on back-to-back kills, before Vanessa Gerig (Towanda, IL) would serve up a pair of aces to separate Pfeiffer once again. All three of Gerig’s aces came in set two within five points of one another to keep Anderson at bay. Mordini and Dickens would pick up kills at 17-11 and 23-17 to help put Pfeiffer up 2-0 in the match.

Anderson came roaring back in set three being down as much as seven points at 13-6. The Trojans would tally an ace from Lindsay Doggett (Jacksonville, AL), a kill from Lancaster and take advantage of three Pfeiffer miscues to sneak back in the set at 14-11. Shelby Netherton’s (Charleston, SC) kill at 16-14 and an ace by libero Katie Rich (Lexington, SC) would square set three at 16 apiece. Three ball handling errors, two by Pfeiffer, one by Anderson, would knot the contest at 21-21 before kills from Lancaster, Marlie Bryant (Easley, SC) and Paulette Rivers (Rock Hill, SC) helped Anderson avoid the sweep and send the match into a fourth set.

Dickens served Pfeiffer out to an early 6-2 lead in the fourth set thanks to a couple of Anderson errors and kills by Mordini and Kaci Markham (Asheboro, NC). Later, a kill by Jordan O’Bryant (Reidsville, NC) put Pfeiffer up 12-4 in their biggest lead of the set. Dickens would thrown down another pair of kills late in set four before delivering the knock-out blow with her fourth and final ace of the night to end it.

Pfeiffer remains home to entertain Erskine on Saturday afternoon in another Conference Carolinas match. The Lady Falcons and Flying Fleet will get things underway at 1:00 p.m. in the Merner Gym.